The reign of the ‘askal’ beauties

It has long been a dream of Nita Lichauco, president of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), to have a Philippine dog become a pedigreed dog. At least, this is what she always tells me each time I meet her at an event sponsored by PAWS. "It would be great if we could truly create a Philippine dog," she would say. "The askal, lovely pet and a beautiful dog, too."

Indeed.

Nita’s desire that the askal be given the recognition it deserves is now a reality. PAWS has chosen 10 finalists in the first native breed beauty pageant, which be held at the SM Megamall Atrium, today at 5 p.m. The natives will compete for the title of "Ang Pinakamagandang Hayop sa Balat ng Lupa."

"These dogs represent the best of the Filipino dog for their appearance, temperament, loyalty, and intelligence," says Rich Ilustre, PAWS volunteer and director of the show. "The rapport between the dog and its owner will be one of the criteria for judging and this will be determined by how well they interact with each other as they go through the whole process of modeling their pets’ casual wear, swimsuits and formal outfits which were all made exclusively by Pooch Couture and Samson & Mom."

For years, it has been an uphill battle for PAWS to try to raise respect for the native dog, who most often are the victims of animal neglect and cruelty. It’s unusual to hear about purebred dogs like Poodles or German Shepherds being killed, but if you are walking with your native dog, you can hear a lot of side remarks how the dog is better off as bar chow or pulutan.

PAWS is the primary animal welfare group that lobbied for the passage of the Animal Welfare Act or Republic Act 8485, which makes it a crime for dogs, cats and other animals classified as "companion animals" to be slaughtered for their meat. However, violations of this law is commonplace in many provinces.

"Implementation of RA8485 needs a lot of improvement," says PAWS director Anna Cabrera. "But if there’s anything we’ve learned over the years, education is the key in helping people see things in a new light and preventing them from abusing animals. This dog pageant is both an educational and fund-raising campaign for the animal shelter."

And the finalists are:

Doggie no. 1 is Patty. She is 10 months old, with long hair and brown eyes. Patty’s human is Julie Ann Ruga

Doggie no. 2 is Christine. She is a year and a half, short-haired and white. She is owned by Stephanie Yabut.

Doggie no. 3 is Tala. She is a year and a half and has black, white and tan markings. She is owned by Lea Elijean Gatpandan.

Doggie no. 4 is Nicky. He is long-haired with white and brown markings. He is owned by Yasmin Jadwani.

Doggie no. 5 is Pretty Girl. She is five years-old and is black and white. Her handler is Nimfa Ugpay. She is owned by Yasmin Jadwani.

Doggie no. 6 is Poypoy. He is two years-old and is a brown beauty. He is owned by Nice Rodriguez.

Doggie no. 7 is Blondie. She is two years-old and is white and brown. She is also onwed by Yasmin Jadwani. Her handlers is Alex Perning.

Doggie no. 8 is Cass. She is one year-old and is a brown short-haired dog. She is owned by Gwen Protasio.

Doggie no. 9 is Sugar. She is a white short-haired doggie. She is owned by Yasmin Jadwani. Her handler is Michael Viernes.

Doggie no. 10 is Alicia. She is a beige short-haired doggie. She is owned by Colleen Cano.